Opinion: Maine is likely to be hit hard by Trump’s tariffs

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • June 18, 2025

In 1993, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) unleashed the forces of globalization. In Maine, a state that had benefited from protectionist policies, the shift to free trade marked the end of manufacturing as the engine of economic development, replacing it with services, specifically hospitality and tourism. It led to an economic development strategy that became incrementally dependent on Canada, not only for its tourists, but for the back-and-forth movements of parts and semi-finished goods. Business is not interested in protectionism. The remedy of tariffs is not going to cure the damage done by globalization; this is an issue of redistribution and regulation. President Trump’s tariffs have generated market chaos, diminished consumer confidence, and increased geopolitical instability. Protectionism may incentivize U.S. and foreign companies to onshore operations to places like California and Texas, but not to Maine. ~ Stefano Tijerina, senior lecturer in Management, Maine Business School

Maine codifies new goal of 100% clean energy by 2040

MAINE PUBLIC • June 18, 2025

Maine lawmakers have passed a bill that moves up the state's timeline to reach net zero carbon emissions. The new law would require the state's energy office to expand Maine’s existing Renewable Portfolio to 90% by 2040, focusing on rooftop wind, solar, and battery storage produced here in the state. The remaining 10% will be dedicated to a new category of clean resources, like hydropower. A previous law signed by Mills in 2019 had set a goal of 100% clean energy by 2050. Achieving 100% clean electricity could lower average household energy costs by about $1,300 per year, according to a study conducted by the state’s energy office last year.

Maine sues federal agency for pulling $9 million grant for salt marsh restoration projects

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • June 18, 2025

Maine is suing the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration for canceling a $9 million grant the state received last year for habitat restoration. The state alleges NOAA violated several federal laws in rescinding the funding in April. It claims NOAA pulled the funding as part of President Donald Trump’s effort to punish Maine for not banning transgender athletes from women’s sports. The grant funding was issued in August 2024 as part of NOAA’s Transformational Habitat Restoration and Coastal Resilience program. The grant was to be used as part of a project to restore tidal flow to help fish and lobster swim from the ocean into a salt marsh along the Pleasant River in Addison that was blocked in the 1940s.

Lawmakers pass bill to allow out-of-state bulky waste in landfills, advocates urge governor to veto

MAINE PUBLIC • June 18, 2025

State lawmakers have approved a bill that allows landfills to continue to accept out-of-state bulky waste through 2027 — and the Conservation Law Foundation is urging Governor Janet Mills to veto it. Nora Bosworth with the Conservation Law Foundation, called the bill a huge setback. "And when you're talking about a landfill [Juniper Ridge Landfill in Old Town] that, based on law and policy, is meant for waste created in Maine, that's just very disheartening, because this is a landfill that has been poisoning communities for years," she said.

Letter: A commonsense step to reducing plastic waste in Maine

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • June 18, 2025

Kudos to the Maine Legislature for advancing LD 1928, a bill that would gradually do away with single-use plastic toiletry bottles in most hotels and motels in Maine. Major hotel chains have already made or have committed to making the switch to refillable containers. This bill could keep some 73 million single-use plastic items out of Maine’s waste stream every year — a significant benefit for the environment, but also a potential cost savings for hotels and motels, as refillable containers can be more economical. By reducing single-use plastics we can help protect our environment and our economy. LD 1928 is a commonsense step to reducing our plastic waste. It should pass and Gov. Mills should sign it. ~ Sandy Scholar, Greenville Junction

In Bath, students choose a hike over detention

MAINE PUBLIC • June 18, 2025

Anyone who has broken the rules at school has probably spent some time in detention — a few hours stuck in a classroom, monitored by a teacher who really doesn't want to be there either. One school counselor at Morse High School in Bath has been piloting a program that takes kids out into nature. Instead of sitting in class, some choose to spend their detention hiking after school. Leslie Trundy, a counselor at Morse, began the program after she attended an outdoor education conference this past fall. She wondered whether spending time outdoors might encourage the kids to open up about the problems they might be experiencing.

Sen. Mike Lee proposes selling your public land

SALT LAKE TRIBUNE • June 18, 2025

Over 18 million acres of Utah’s public land are eligible to be put up for sale under legislation proposed by Sen. Mike Lee.The eligible land features trails, grazing areas and even some of the state’s most popular ski areas. Lee, the chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, released an updated draft of the bill over the weekend that calls for the mandatory sale of Bureau of Land Management and U.S. Forest Service Land. If passed, the legislation would require 3 million acres of public land to be sold chosen from a pool of 258 million acres across 11 Western states, including Utah years.

Green Crab Week offers tastings and talks about the highly invasive creatures

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • June 18, 2025

Green Crab Week runs from June 20-29 and includes seafood pop-ups and other events aimed at combatting the highly invasive green crab. The initiative brings together 75+ restaurants, fish markets and organizations across the region, including in Maine. Restaurants in Portland, Biddeford, Brunswick and Rockland, as well as Peekytoe Provisions fish market in Bar Harbor, are also participating in Green Crab Week. The Rockport Library will host a one-hour talk on Turning the Tables on Green Crabs with Maine Green Crabs on June 25 at 6 p.m.

Maine leads the country with first aquaculture apprenticeship program

CENTRAL MAINE • June 19, 2025

Kelly Morgan and Matt Czuchra are current and former apprentices, respectively, in the country’s first  — and only — registered aquaculture apprenticeship program. Maine has, for years, been campaigning to be the leader in the country’s aquaculture industry. In 2022, the state became the top U.S. producer of farmed kelp, harvesting just under 1 million pounds. Maine’s water-based farmers also raise shellfish, fish and other types of seaweed. But like many employers in the state, aquaculture farmers struggle to find consistent help. Farm owners and labor officials hope this program can help attract, train and retain more aquaculture workers. And they hope Maine can set a model to continue leading the way.

Column: The mystifying sight of sturgeon leaping on the Androscoggin River

TIMES RECORD • June 18, 2025

Recently, while having lunch with a colleague on the deck of the Sea Dog restaurant people were watching giant splashes made by sturgeon leaping out of the waters of the Androscoggin just below the bridge. Maine is home to two species of sturgeon — the Atlantic sturgeon (Acipenser oxyrinchus) and the smaller and less common shovelnose sturgeon (Scaphirhynchus platorynchus). Both of these are protected and fishing for them is prohibited. On the other side of the river, at the foot of the 250th Anniversary Park, there was another crowd of onlookers — parents, kids and anglers. This is not only a sign of recovery for the sturgeon population, but also a sign of recovery for the entire watershed. ~ Susan Olcott

Augusta bird attack prompts trail closure at Bond Brook Trails

KENNEBEC JOURNAL • June 17, 2025

A bird of prey aggressively protecting its nest has prompted the closure of two trails at Bond Brook Recreation Area after it attacked a trail runner and sank its talons into his head. Officials believe a nesting goshawk is defending its territory and is attacking people it deems threatening. The runner suffered multiple scratches on his head and went to urgent care to have the scratches cleaned out and sanitized, but was otherwise OK.

Hey, Mainers! Leave the baby animals alone.

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • June 17, 2025

A doe can often leave her babies alone for many hours while she goes out to find food for herself before returning later on to nurse. Just like humans, mother deer are inclined to teach their children that whining won’t get them fed any faster. Maine wildlife authorities say that people should never interfere with fawns, even if they’re alone. If you spot a fawn w could be injured or otherwise in trouble, you can contact a game warden via the appropriate regional office.

Andover voters approve solar moratorium

RUMFORD FALLS TIMES • June 17, 2025

Voters at the June 14 annual town meeting approved a 180-day moratorium on utility-scale solar projects. A citizen petition was submitted to the Planning Board asking for a pause to revisit and set boundaries for solar farms. Planning Board Chairman Sid Pew said he agreed to put it to a vote at a town meeting. There are two solar farms in place, with two more “in the pipeline.” The moratorium would pertain only to large-scale projects that would be selling power to Central Maine Power. After the 180 days the board has the authority to extend it another 180 days, which would take it to the next annual town meeting.

Trump could dismantle national monuments

E&E NEWS June 17, 2025

Environmentalists and Democratic lawmakers are casting a wary eye on where, and when, President Donald Trump might aim a new legal directive that argues he has the power to wipe out national monuments created by his predecessors in the White House. “We’ve never lived in a world where the president at his whim can abolish a monument and what that means exactly; we will have to see,” said Justin Pidot, a Maine native and law professor at the University of Arizona who previously worked at the White House’s Council on Environmental Quality. “But it massively scales back the protective power of the Antiquities Act.”

Man dies after canoe capsizes on western Maine pond

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • June 16, 2025

A man died on Saturday after his canoe capsized on a pond in the Oxford County town of Waterford. authorities believe four men had been on the pond in three canoes when one of the canoes with two people aboard capsized. The other boaters were able to get the men in the water to shore, but one, Pedro Quizhpi, 50, of Ecuador, was unresponsive, could not be revived by CPR, and was dead when the deputy arrived. Two personal flotation devices were in the overturned canoe, but the occupants of the canoe weren’t wearing them.

Column: Biking Maine’s Sebago to Sea Trail offers an array of challenges and sights

TIMES RECORD • June 16, 2025

The Sebago to Sea Trail offers something for all biking enthusiasts. A significant portion is paved, but there is also some moderately challenging mountain biking in the northwestern sector and a gravel ride on a side trail. One of my favorite trail rides. ~ Ron Chase

CMP electricity bills to increase in July

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • June 16, 2025

Central Maine Power Co. customers will see their monthly bills go up. The company will increase its distribution rates by about 3.3% for customers who take the default, standard offer electricity rate, according to the Maine Public Utilities Commission, which approved the increase last week. Customers who source their electricity from a competitive provider will see a roughly 5.3% increase in distribution side of their bill. Commission Chair Philip L. Bartlett II said the increase was driven primarily by heightened storm recovery costs. The change will raise CMP’s distribution revenue by nearly $71 million. The company’s latest rate hike comes after rates rose about 7.3% in January. For customers of Versant Power, the state’s second largest electric utilitly, rates increased in April by roughly 8%.

National Guard wraps up third year of work at Lake George Regional Park

CENTRAL MAINE • June 15, 2025

A National Guard unit from Maine has been hard at work making improvements at Lake George Regional Park for the third year in a row. Through the National Guard’s Innovation Readiness Training Program, a platoon of 21 from the Sanford-based 262nd Engineer Construction Company spent the first two weeks of the month working on the social hall in the park’s west side, a facility that park leadership hopes will draw more people to the park year-round.

Letter: Is our Tiananmen Square moment approaching?

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • June 16, 2025

Against the backdrop of protests in Los Angeles and the deployment of troops, President Trump continues to peddle his cultural revolution with a requirement for national parks to post signs aimed at removing any content that “inappropriately disparage(s) Americans past or living.” No longer is it OK to share the history of women and children massacred at Wounded Knee or the bloodshed at the Homestead Steel strike in Pittsburgh along with our positive achievements. Today, the story of Tiananmen Square is only known to the Chinese people through whispers. It has been erased from public display and discussion. Will Chairman Trump push us to the same moment in L.A. to advance his ideology of party thought? ~ Christopher Ring, York

I’m the new outdoors editor for the BDN

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • June 16, 2025

My background is in wildlife biology, having worked for many agencies across the country on various research and management projects. I am a registered Maine hunting, fishing and recreation guide, and I love finding shed antlers, hunting with dogs, experimenting with new game recipes, foraging for mushrooms and hiking. I’d rather be in the woods or on the water any day of the week, and I take pride in growing my skill and experience with every trip. My pursuits across the country in the natural resources field during the last 20 years have introduced me to new methods, techniques and knowledge that bolstered my experience as a biologist, hunter and outdoorswoman. For years I’ve wanted an outlet to share these stories, and working for the Bangor Daily News seemed a perfect opportunity to do so. ~ Susan Bard